Sunday, June 30, 2013

Lucinda Williams spent three years recording and re-recording the songs for this rambling bluesy country travelogue with three different producers. During the recording of her previous album 'Sweet Old World', she walked away from a contract with RCA because she was dissatisfied with the direction they were taking her music. While that album did not chart, it garnished so much praise from critics that she was offered a deal with major label Mercury/Polygram Records. She began recording the songs for 'Car Wheels on a Gravel Road' with guitarist and producer Gurf Morlix in Austin, Texas; but was unhappy with the way they sounded. A year later she started again. This time with songwriter Steve Earle and his engineer Ray Kennedy in Nashville, Tennesee on vintage recording equipment. Earle and Williams butted heads and she made the decision to start again in Los Angeles with Roy Bittan keyboardist for the E-Street Band. She spent a lot of time experimenting with different approaches on each song and the sessions went on for months.

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Pink Floyd expanded and contracted with the innovative space rock of this artful psychedelic evolution. In the wake of the success of their classic debut 'The Piper at the Gates of Dawn', the band found themselves increasingly disturbed by the erratic behavior of front man Syd Barrett. During live performances he might detune his guitar or he might simply stand with his arms at his side and stare blankly out into space. Interviews didn't fare any better. They began sessions for 'A Saucerful Of Secrets'at EMI Studios on Abbey Road in London and continued at De Lane Lea Studios on Kingsway. In late 1967, David Gilmour was brought in as a second guitarist to fill in the gaps left by Barrett. As the sessions continued, the band played a few gigs as a five piece with Barrett occasionally taking part in the proceedings. Picking up the different members on the way to a show at Southampton University the rest of the band decided to save themselves the trouble and not stop and get Barrett, signaling the end of his tenure with the band he started. With their primary songwriter out of the picture, the rest of the band began composing material that could fill out their album. The lengthy title suite was pieced together from several different songs (I. "Something Else", II. "Syncopated Pandemonium", III. "Storm Signal", and IV. "Celestial Voices") and mapped out in what Gilmour describes as an "architectural design". Producer Norman Smith refused to take part in the recording of the track, dismissing it as "noise".

The album featured Roger Waters on bass guitar, percussion, and vocals; Richard Wright on piano, organ, mellotron, vibraphone, xylophone, vocals, and tin whistle; David Gilmour on guitar, kazoo, and vocals; Nick Mason on drums, percussion, vocals, and kazoo; and Syd Barrett on acoustic guitar, slide guitar, guitar, and vocals; with producer Norman Smith on drums and backing vocals; and The Salvation Army (The International Staff Band) on "Jugband Blues". 'A Saucerful Of Secrets' went to number ten in France and nine in the UK. The album cover was designed by Hipgnosis.

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Albert King captured lightning in a bottle with the steamy performances of this triumphant tour de force. Born (under a bad sign) Albert Nelson in Indianola, MS, and raised in Forrest City, AR; as a child he taught himself to play by building a guitar out of a cigar box. He started out playing in gospel groups until he was exposed to the blues; he adopted the surname King after hearing a single by B.B. King. He migrated from Arkansas to St. Louis where he began recording for Bobbin Records. The left-handed guitarist played a regular right-handed guitar upside down, a Gibson Flying V, which he named Lucy, in homage to B.B. King's Lucille. He recorded one session for King Records and then cut four songs for independent label Coun-Tree, before signing with Stax Records in 1966. He recorded a number of singles with the house band Booker T. & the MG's which were compiled onto his classic Stax debut 'Born Under a Bad Sign' which exposed him to a more diverse audience. 'Live Wire/Blues Power' was recorded live at the Fillmore West in San Francisco with Albert King on electric guitar and vocals; Willie James Exon on guitar; James Washington on organ; Roosevelt Pointer on bass; and Theotis Morgan on drums. https://rockhall.com/inductees/albert-king/bio/"Watermelon Man" (Herbie Hancock) – 4:04https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6u669AlN5E8"Blues Power" (King) – 10:18https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSC42VpEuRM"Night Stomp" (Raymond Jackson, King) – 5:49https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OPBKYnZtbA"Blues At Sunrise" (King) – 8:44https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1I_sO81eL4"Please Love Me" (B.B. King, Jules Taub) – 4:01"Look Out" (King) – 5:20https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3MZPKZMDrc'Live Wire/Blues Power'full album:01 - Watermelon Man 00:0002 - Blues Power 04:0303 - Night Stomp 14:2004 - Blues At Sunrise 20:0905 - Please Love Me 28:5306 - Look Out 32:51